On arising, I opened my eyes to find Gordon sitting beside me on the edge of the bed. I felt joy at seeing him, yet knew not whence the emotions came. The only time I had felt such emotion had been toward my own father, rest his soul. He looked upon me, and said “dress now, and I shall show you your new home”. He stood and as he walked out the room said “I will be back for you both soon”.

My heart sank, as I realised that I must share my new father with ‘that woman’. I despised her presence, and only tolerated it because Gordon wished it. But I could see in his eyes I was his favourite, his chosen one. She was a mistake, and I vowed to see to it that she would be out of the picture as soon as I could make it so.

Rhiannon stumbled into the room, and I told her of Gordon’s wishes. She said “at last, we get out of these rooms! Now, what to wear......?” We went to the suitcases left from last night, and found they were in fact our own clothes. We surmised that they had discovered where we lived by the information in our purses. Rhiannon dressed in something I thought inappropriate, and I dressed in a grey suit. Looking over my shoulder she announced “well, judging by your underwear, (referring to my lingerie) I can see you have at least a hint of sexuality in you. Not that you’d know it from the other clothes you wear.“ I was embarrassed by her crudeness, it served to affirm my decision to be rid of her, while putting up the pretence of being her friend. She just rambled on and on, non-stop talking, that I could take it no longer. I said to her “please stop”. She ignored me and kept going. I said again “stop”, which she again ignored. Finally, I turned to her, looked her in the eye, and yelled “STOP!” Suddenly, she stopped, mid sentence, and with a dazed look on her face, wandered into her own room. I was thankful she finally got the hint. It was then I thought, “Gordon did the very same thing when he told her to drink, perhaps I can use this new gift, and turn him against her?”

With that, Gordon returned, without his guards now. We followed him throughout the mansion that was our new home, while he told us about the rooms. There was one room, his study I surmise, that was completely off limits to us, but we would have freedom to walk around as we wished. Rhiannon then said “so when can we go outside and go places?” Gordon said “outside is off limits for now. You need to be trained in your new gifts of our Clan. The Masquerade must be upheld at all times, and I lack the confidence in both of you, to allow you to hunt in the world you came from.” She seemed disappointed, but I was happy to stay by my new father’s side, wherever that was. The last room we entered was the kitchen area. There we encountered the staff, who were mortals. As we neared them, I could actually hear their hearts beating within them, and smell the sweetness of their skin. I began to experience that hunger again, although not as strong, there was no denying it existed. As if sensing my feelings, Gordon said “and noone is to ever feed off the staff. They are enslaved to me by my blood, and feed the other mortals that abide by me. You are to stay away from them. I will supply you with your food as you need it. Is this understood?” He looked at both of us then, and we nodded.

He told the staff to take their leave, and they left the room. Gordon said “now, I have things to do. Walk around, familiarise yourselves. Be sure to go back to your rooms before daybreak.” With that, he left us standing there, unsure of where to go, or what to do.

Rhiannon said “well, what now?” I didn’t bother to answer her, as it seemed to be more a question directed to herself anyway. She strolled around the kitchen, and stopped in front of a fruit bowl. Almost absently, she picked up an apple and bit into it. She spat it out, and commented on how vile it tasted. It seemed we no longer needed real food such as that. She then wandered over to the door, which had a pane of clear glass in it. This was the only window in the house that I had noticed wasn’t boarded up. Rhiannon looked out, and commented on how much she could see. She looked over to me, and I saw, once again, her eyes glowing red. I commented about it, and she said “it feels the same to me, but I can see like it is daylight almost. I can see the guards walking around, and the line of trees by the fence line. If only I could go outside and experiment with this.”

I seized the chance put before me. If I could encourage her to go outside, against Gordon’s wishes, then call him to me while she did this, perhaps he would move his affections to me even more. I had to have her believe I would act as a lookout for her, so as not to arouse her suspicions. I said “well, he did say we would learn to use our gifts, so I’m sure he wouldn’t mind, providing you stayed in the confines of the fence. Besides, he doesn’t need to know, providing you are careful not to be caught by the guards. I will keep watch for you, and if I hear anyone approach, I will call to you.” She eyed me suspiciously, and said “I don’t know if I should”. I encouraged her further, looking into her eyes, and said “GO. It will be alright if you GO outside.” She again had that slightly dazed look in her (now red) eyes. She opened the door, and cautiously walked out.

I waited till I could see her shadowy form cross the yard, then walked briskly into the lounge area I had seen Gordon walk towards earlier. He sat on a chair reading, before a cold and empty fireplace. He looked up as he saw me, and as a smile crept over his face, I sat by his feet looking up at him. He caressed my hair with his hand (which now looking normal) and asked “my Childe, where is your sister?” I said to him “oh Father, I am so sorry, but she has disobeyed you and gone outside. I tried to stop her, but....” He got to his feet so quickly he seemed a blur. I hurried after him as he strode to the kitchen door. We reached the door in time to see Rhiannon walked backwards through the door, saying “that was so exciting Teresa...” but stopped speaking when she turned to see our Father standing there. She said hurriedly “I’m sorry, really, but we thought it would be OK to try out our powers, didn’t we Teresa?” I looked at Gordon and said “I’m sorry, I don’t know why she is trying to involve me. I had nothing to do with her actions Father”. He looked at me, and said “you’re lying.” “No Father, really. It is her that has gone against your wishes”. He looked at Rhiannon, with her hurt stare towards me, and once again said louder “you’re lying”. I said again “no Father, I love you. It is her”.

Then, in a flash, his now clawed hand he raised above him as he yelled “YOU’RE LYING”. His hand ripped violently across my face, his nails biting into my flesh, leaving four deep gouges across my face, from ear to chin. Holding my face, I crouched on the floor at his feet. He looked down with disgust and hurt in his eyes. He said “You have lied to me. Did you not think I would know, you silly Childe. You were my first born, and you have betrayed both me and your Clan sister. You are not worthy of my affection. You will leave, and if you still walk this Earth in a year, you may return to me. You must then, however, take the Blood Oath to me forever more, and swear by this to honour your Gangrel Clan heritage. Do not seek me out before that time, lest I have you turned to dust. I hope by then you will learn of the respect needed to be considered my Childe.” I reached out to him, and pleaded with him. He turned from me, and with a sideways kick, pushed me out the door, slamming it before me. I sat there, crying tears of blood, until the guards dragged me to the gate, pushed me outside, and closed the gates behind me.

Where was I to go now? I didn’t even know where I was. My mind was blurred with confusion and pain from my injury. I walked and walked, until I noticed some familiar buildings. Somehow I had staggered onto the road, and was hit by a car. As the car screeched to a halt, two men jumped out of the car to assist me, but on seeing me, they backed off and drove off. Eventually I found my way home, and retreated to my flat.